This invention relates to information technology, and more particularly to a system and method for representing the information technology infrastructure of an organization.
Organizations typically have a large number and variety of information technology elements, such as software applications, subsystems, and databases, which together make up the information technology system of the organization. Moreover, many of these information technology elements are used by various elements in the organization, such as sales, accounting, and engineering departments.
Unfortunately, the relationships between the various information technology elements and their uses by different organizational elements, which together constitute the information technology infrastructure of the organization, are normally hidden from decision makers. A time consuming review of source code may be undertaken to determine the relationships between the information technology elements and their usage in each organizational element. This review may reveal that the information technology infrastructure is quite complex and difficult to characterize or represent.
The present invention substantially reduces or eliminates at least some of the disadvantages and problems associated with representing the information technology infrastructure of an organization. To accomplish this, the present invention provides representations of the information technology infrastructure of an organization in interactive and graphical formats that are readily discernible and technically useful.
In one embodiment of the present invention, a computer program embodied in a computer readable media for representing the information technology infrastructure of an organization includes an interactive display module and an output module. The interactive display module is operable to generate a hierarchical list of information technology elements and organizational elements in the information technology infrastructure of an organization and to generate an interactive user interface that presents the hierarchical list. The output module is operable to generate a hierarchical graph of the information technology infrastructure of the organization. The hierarchical list and the hierarchical graph each represent the information technology infrastructure of the organization.
In another embodiment, a method performed on a computer for representing the information technology infrastructure of an organization includes storing data representing information technology elements of an organization, organizational elements of the organization, and relationships between the information technology elements and the organizational elements. The method also includes generating a hierarchical list of the information technology elements and the organizational elements for presentation by an interactive user interface, wherein the hierarchical list represents the information technology infrastructure of the organization. The method further includes displaying the interactive user interface that presents the hierarchical list on a display device.
The present invention has several important technical features and advantages. First, by generating the interactive user interface that presents the hierarchical list of the information technology elements and the organizational elements of the organization, the relationships between the information technology elements and the organizational elements in the information technology infrastructure are readily discernible and modifiable. Modifications can include rearranging the hierarchical order of the information technology elements in the hierarchical list, moving the information technology elements between different organizational elements in the hierarchical list, adding information technology elements to the hierarchical list, and deleting information technology elements from the hierarchical list. Second, by generating a hierarchical graph of the information technology infrastructure, the information technology infrastructure of the organization is placed in a format that is readily presentable to and usable by others.
In a particular embodiment, the hierarchical graph will include a label for each occurrence of an information technology element that occurs more than once in the hierarchical graph. Each label will locate each occurrence of the information technology element in the hierarchical graph. The hierarchical graph will also include cross-references at each occurrence of the information technology element to the other occurrences of the information technology element in the hierarchical graph. This cross-referencing allows ready identification of high dependency sectors in the information technology infrastructure of the organization, and identifying high dependency sectors assists in determining which sectors to focus on during compliance testing, upgrades and enhancements, and general flow testing.
Other technical advantages will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the following figures, description, and claims.